straight answers on expensive knives for bushcraft?

I

ipm

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Feb 26, 2009
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I don't knw much about bushcraft, but i occasionally see certain higher end brands of knives getting mentioned as tough, or useful for outdoor use.

this could be credible but i am not sure.

the trouble is i don't see them mentioned often in this sub-forum.

its not that i look often or anything, its just when i do look, its usually something like bark river, fallkniven, etc. that i see as the main tools.

what i don't see much is a mention of chris reeve fixed blades such as shadow III, or another brand, busse.

am i wrong? are they used often and i just missed the posts?

do these actually make good bushcraft knives or it more hype than anything?

it seems that a shadow III is not that much more expensive than a bark river knife from what i can see. why is it not very visible in this forum?

please understand that i am asking out of ignorance and i am not looking to pick fights at all.

also, i am not suggesting they are bad knives. i would just like to know from people who know more than me about bushcraft.

so, whats your experience with chris reeve and busse? do they deliver?
 
I don't have either of those but I do own a Swamp Rat and it's a nice knife. The problem is that it's designed to be used hard so the edge isn't all that great at woodworking/whittling. I'd rather use my SAK to whittle than my Swampy. That being said, the Swamp Rat will get the job done it's just not as nice to use. On the flip side I owned a Bark River Mini-Northstar and the wood seemed to pop off the stick when I was carving. The edge geometry was just a lot better at that task. Another reason is that a lot of people on this sub-forum like hatchets, axes, and machetes so there's really no need for a thick bladed 9 inch Busse. Still, there's people on here that prefer those types of knives.
 
Never heard of the Shadow 3 thingy, but I think Shotgun nailed it. The thicker Busse family knives, Ranger knives, and the like have a definite place in the outdoors for heavier tasks like chopping and batonning. Much of the discussion in this forum centers around notching, scraping, and other fine tasks better handled by a thin blade.
 
I've got a couple of Chris Reeves's knives, a Shadow IV and a Green Beret, and they are...OK for bushcrafting. They are both solidly built knives that can take some abuse. I did a protracted review of the GB on this thread: Green Beret Field Trials. While I like both knives, I don't think they are ideal bushcrafting blades. The blades are thick and edge geometry is not optimal.

I haven't gotten my hands on a Busse that would be useful as a bushcrafter, but they do make some nice looking blades. I've got a little Game Warden I adore. I'm not convinced they are worth the money, but that's for you to decide. ;) If Busse ever makes another useful looking knife I'll probably order one. I'm stupid like that.
 
There are WSS members who use both brands but they are in the minority. Most of us prefer shorter and thinner blades than those produced by those companies. It all boils down to what your primary use is.
 
i agree with shotgun...ive had a BUsse CGFBM its a beast of a knife and wont ever die but it really wasnt what i was looking for (i even convexed the edge). i do have a swamp rat m9le that is a beautiful bowie very light and fast in the hand and comes with the busse garuntee. ive also got a SYCO SOD that is a great campknife once the edge is convexed. busse's are geared more towards the military and tactical style....bushcraft deals alot with wood and "woods matter" not so much chopping through concrete blocks or prying open doors. ivenever owned or held a reeves knife so i cant say. id say if you want to start somewhere buy a Mora. my mora S2 ($12) bit better into wood than my Busse BAD ($200) :)
 
BlackHills said:
There are WSS members who use both brands but they are in the minority. Most of us prefer shorter and thinner blades than those produced by those companies. It all boils down to what your primary use is.
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Don't forget that Busse does produce short and thin bladed knives, as well as long and thick ones. They're not all big choppers.
 
Evolute said:
Don't forget that Busse does produce short and thin bladed knives, as well as long and thick ones. They're not all big choppers.
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That's true but most of their models are larger/thicker. I'd think the BAD (Boney Active Duty for those who don't speak Busse) would be a decent bushcraft knife but I've not handled one.
 
Whatever floats your boat and fills your needs.
A $1000 (secondary market) Mears Woodlore can't do any more than a $200 Koster but some like a Woodlore.
Buy a knife that fits your primary need or one for each need if there are several and you can afford it.
If you want to leave the axe at home and just carry a big blade, buy a big Busse.
If your doing detailed work like making a firebow/ board, trap trigger notches, pegs, etc, buy a true woods blade.
 
Blackhills, I've got a BAD and it is a handy little knife. Makes a good EDC, but for some reason I'd not choose it for a bushcrafting blade. Maybe a little short. Takes a good edge and has a wicked point for driling, but not my idea of a bushcrafter.

I think Cpl Punishment did favor it as a bushcrafting knife however. Maybe he can weigh in on the subject.

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For woodwork i dislike a choil and anything that puts space between my index finger and the power side of the edge.
What do you lose or gain with the design of the knife regardless of price or reputation? What's a appropriate blade for the tasks you ask of it? Personal preference really regardless of price. Have the right tool for the job.
 
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If you carry an axe or machete, a $12 Mora will be better or just as good as any other knife for bushcraft.

G
 
It's been interesting to watch the fads come and go. For a while it was Nessmuks, and also Ranger knives, then Kepharts and Mora/Scandi ground knives. Rat cutlery is getting a lot of attention lately, but I'm sure it will be replaced in a couple of years with something else.

Busse makes very good knives, well suited for the outdoors. I don't find them any thicker than a lot of other brands that are currently popular. Chris Reeves makes good knives also. The fads are cyclical, and the turnover here is pretty high, keep that in mind.
 
I have knives from both those makers and they are great knives. But I do think different companies have different general orientations. While there are exceptions in each line-up, some makers target the tactical crowd, others heavy duty tactical/outdoors, some toward hunting, and others are orientated more toward the woodcraft crowd. That's why I think you see more Bark Rivers and Rat Cutlery knives here, because there major orientation is toward the outdoor skills market. It doesn't mean you can't find a Bushcraft Busse or Barkie Chopper, its simply a matter of the preponderance of their offerings.
 
Rotte said:
I've got a couple of Chris Reeves's knives, a Shadow IV and a Green Beret, and they are...OK for bushcrafting. They are both solidly built knives that can take some abuse. I did a protracted review of the GB on this thread: Green Beret Field Trials. While I like both knives, I don't think they are ideal bushcrafting blades. The blades are thick and edge geometry is not optimal.

I haven't gotten my hands on a Busse that would be useful as a bushcrafter, but they do make some nice looking blades. I've got a little Game Warden I adore. I'm not convinced they are worth the money, but that's for you to decide. ;) If Busse ever makes another useful looking knife I'll probably order one. I'm stupid like that.
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off topic, but what's the sandwich recipe in your other thread? :D
 
I use my rat cutlery RC-4 that is a high convex for most all my bushcraft tasks and have not had any trouble carving notching or most any other task for that matter. I can see how people doing very intricate or fine carving a SAK or smaller knife would probably suit the task better for control reasons.
 
I had a Game Warden and an Active Duty. Both were around .18" thick. That already is kinda on the thick side for a 3 inch bladed knife but they were also thick behind the edge and weighed 8 or 9 ounces. I did a lot of grinding on both, thinning the edge and convexing the shoulder. The problem I encountered was that once I got everything thin enough to be a decent cutter, the steel at the edge would deform much too easily. I like and still own a Cultellus and have found that with 15 degree per side edge bevels it's a reasonably efficient cutter. I just wish it had a spear point and no mini-choil/talon hole. That and a Busse Satin Jack Tac are what I still own and plan to keep from my collection peak of 7 Busse knives. If you're interested in trying them definitely give 'em a shot. All 5 Busses I sold were users and I think at the end I was actually up $10, not bad for getting some dirt time with some nice blades.

I have a Chris Reeve Mountaineer II and while it's a really sweet knife, I just can't get into the hollow grind on it. It makes sense in many ways, since it helps to maintain a thin profiled, very quick to sharpen edge. I just prefer flat or convex primary grinds. My only other gripe about the CR One Piece knives is that the edge retention on the A2 doesn't hold a candle to the A2 used in Bark River knives. Those 2 - 3 HRC points seem to make a big difference.
 
i don't think that there's anything wrong with those knives because if it came down to it, the best knife you have is the one you have on you. personally though, i would prefer a custom from one of the makers on this forum. they are great to work with and, in most cases, a lot cheaper than reeves or busse. i've only had the privilege of ordering from john (stomper on here) and i can honestly say that talking with the maker can be a big selling point. there's something very comforting and personal to know that you can call or email and quickly get a response. not to mention that there are so many makers in this sub-forum and, hey, we're sorta like family :) and families help each other out. i have a becker necker, but my main go-to blades will always be custom from now on. not that there's anything wrong with reeves or busse. it's just my personal preference.
 
Interesting thread here. I pretty much followed ipm here from the Chris Reeve forum. I'm probably the most ignorant of them all, though!

I found it interesting that sodak referred to the companies and knife styles that he did as fads. From my perspective, RAT and Ranger knives are simple and durable designs. Maybe from the perspective of this Wilderness Survival forum they are fads, but they seem like tried and true simple designs.

I've noticed that "thin" is the popular blade of choice here. How thick would be too thick? I, personally, look for knives that will be able to perform a wide variety of tasks because I prefer one decent all around tool over multiple specialized tools.

What led me here is that I'm trying to decide which Reeve knife to buy!
 
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